Nifty News

Faithful Followers

Sunday, April 15, 2012

Today, I treated myself to an iced coconut coffee from Dunkin’ Donuts. As I pulled my car up to the drive-thru window and paid for my coffee, I told the cashier I’d like to pay for the person’s order behind me. I do this now and then and the good feeling I get from doing it never gets old. It spreads throughout me, warms me, and makes me smile. I drove away grinning, but got stuck in traffic. The woman whose order I’d just paid for drove up next to me, honking, waving and smiling like crazy. I nodded and smiled in return and continued my commute to work.

There are so many great things about doing random acts of kindness for strangers. For one, you get to make someone else’s day! That’s a powerful feeling. Another amazing thing that stems from your act is that the person who benefitted from your kindness is likely to pass it on in some way to another person. It really is the gift that keeps on giving. (Now I’m thinking of Clark’s Jelly of the Month Club gift on National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation!) And, one of the coolest things that comes doing something nice for someone else is that it pulls you out of yourself. We get so wrapped up in our own problems and agendas that we end up unintentionally alienating ourselves from the rest of the world. We’re so focused on ourselves that we forget there’s a whole world of people out there with their own struggles.

Don’t take my word for it; try it yourself! Do something for someone else and see how it brings you out of yourself and makes you feel really good for the rest of the day!

As always, please leave me a comment with your ideas for random acts of kindness. It’s not bragging about how awesome you are; it’s sharing ideas that can benefit everyone who reads this.

I love this. Sometimes I'm so strapped for cash I really don't have the extra $2 to help someone else out but I do like to let people behind me in the grocery line go ahead of me. Talk about making someone happy!

My boyfriend works part time at a parking garage in a hospital. Some people are seriously strapped for cash to pay for parking when a family member is in the hospital for an extended period. One day some young girls came into the garage. He wasn't sure why they kept looking at him and whispering. Eventually they approached and asked how much it cost to park. He told them $1 to $3 dollars depending on how long they are there. The girls explained they were doing "random acts of kindness" and wanted to pay for people to park who needed it. My BF knew who was having a hard time so agreed to distribute the $20. The first lady had just learned her husband wasn't going to live more than a few hours. She broke down and cried. The second woman had learned her father had terminal cancer, she said she had been thinking what a cold cruel world until that happened. My boyfriend learned he can get hardship vouchers for people which he does. It's only three dollars max but it can make a difference.

Keep up the good work Dawn, simple things can change a person's outlook even if it is helping someone with groceries at the store or opening a door.